New Year Resolutions - Week 9 Achievements & Failures #TheLifesWay

Hi Friends, 

Week 9 started with a great trip to Pretoria via the Gautrain #FreetoMove campaign where they invited people across Johannesburg and Pretoria to use the Gautrain and buses and enjoy a trip with their family to any location where the train goes other than the O.R.Tambo airport. I and Keisha went from Sandton to Pretoria and subsequently to the Pretoria Zoo only to return back as the queue to enter the zoo was a kilometre long if not less. 

Week 9 - 26 Feb 2022 (Sat) to 04 Mar 2022 (Fri)

1. Walking - I did walk around 20 kilometres this week but only recorded or switched on my watch for around 17.5 kilometres. I took a whole round of the Rosebank mall from the bottom floor to the first floor only to find that the Incredible connection shop is just 50meters away from the escalators and the main entrance. I really feel great to be walking as and when I feel like and listening to audiobooks while walking. For 2 months completed in 2022, my overall kilometres recorded on Huawei Watch GT 2e is 186.62 kilometres which are for 9 weeks comes out more than 20.74 kilometres per week and that was our goal. I am really happy that I completed the same overall despite losing it for a week or two. 

2. Daily Prayers - I completed the 37x Years of Hanuman Chalisa on 28-Feb as this month went really slow in terms of prayers. I made a rule that I have to get to around the 1000 mark by the end of March-22 which means I have to do around 30+ per day. I am tracking the same closely and will reach there hopefully. 

3. Entertainment - I watched a lot of movies this week - Death On The Nile (Movie) starring Gal Gadot at Montecasino @Movies on Saturday afternoon alone and The Fame Game (Netflix) web series starring Madhuri Dixit on the binge-watch on Friday night. I also completed the Season 11 of The Big Bang Theory along with Kapil Sharma's I am not done yet episode on Netflix. 

4. Launch Event - I was invited to be at the TimesLive event with Gautrain which was a webinar I registered for but got to be part of the in-person event. I won some goodies there which will come to me soon and then I will reveal them to you on my Youtube channel. 

5. Thank You - I completed around 41000 counts during this week and it's really a great experience to continually be in a state of gratitude and gratefulness all the time. This is I will say one of the best habits as promoted in the book by Ken Honda - Happy Money. 

6. Audiobooks - I completed The Courage to be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga and this is one of the books which you need to read too so I plan to revisit it a little later once my goal of 25 books for the year is complete. I feel now I am covering books at the pace I used to earlier in my life during Engineering and MBA. I started listening to the Happy Sexy Millionaire: Unexpected Truths about Fulfilment, Love and Success by Steven Bartlett which I am also loving. 

7. Social Media - Consistency is the key as I am now scheduling content to go live every day on Instagram and Facebook channels. I want to implement the same for the blog posts and Youtube channel too. Also, stopping posting the press releases has given me a lot of time to walk, read and for completing other things which are worth some importance to me rather than being dependent on the brands to send me their event invites and later some gadgets to review etc. I am only doing what I want to do and nothing else. It gives me a plan to pitch to the brands in a manner that is comfortable for both parties. If they don't revert they know why I am not promoting them and if they revert it's a win for me and them. 

March 2022 is something that has arrived now and I am really prepared to complete all my pending tasks from submitting insurance claims to school admissions for kids. I have also started shooting the videos which are coming on Youtube and the same are now part of the daily posts on IG/FB too. Let's see the response of the public and then will go for some more creative approach to promote them again as I am still so far from the 4000 hours of public watchtime. 

Cheers!!!

Support me if you like reading this blog post by buying me a cup of tea (so far USD 0.00) - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/TheLifesWay Contact at thelifesway@gmail.com to collaborate and promote your services and products. Subscribe to my YOUTUBE Channel for giveaways, product reviews and mystery unboxings. #TheLifesWay #10YearsofTheLifesWay. Namaste!

5 Ways to use UNO Through Education #Uno #UnoFlip #UnoJr @Mattel

Hi Friends, 

When something is colourful and fun, a child is able to participate without too much effort, allowing them to relax and embrace the opportunity to learn. Uno is a fantastic way to create a platform for this. While using the different ways mentioned below a child will absorb different skills through playing the game, giving them the opportunity to master different skills like counting, memorising, matching, building, creative thinking and using their gross and fine motor skills.

Here are a few activities that could be used with your set of Uno cards.

Teach Kids about Matching: For Children 1 to 4-year-olds

We are surrounded by colour and observe it daily therefore it plays such a big role in our emotions. Colour is also the most important factor in design and creativity for preschool children and even for children up to ages 7 to 8. While some colours stimulate, others lead to relaxation, comfort, tiredness or sometimes anxiety. The reaction to each colour originates from our subconscious. From birth, colour plays a large role in visual development. As kids get older it will stimulate their minds and later on assist with educational skills.

Here we need to recognise the different colours and be able to separate them accordingly. Have your child paint 4 different colour paper plates. This is not just creative and fun, but painting allows them to use the muscles in their hands as well as assist in holding their paintbrush and working with paint and water in the correct manner. Playing relaxing musing while doing this activity will assist with relaxation and creativity.

Once you have coloured all 4 plates and they are dry. Let the child use the deck of cards to separate them according to the colour on the plates.

For 4 -6 years you can do the same activity but add the numbers to be matched for the child to recognise different numbers on the cards, also placing them according to colour.

Teach Number recognition: For Children 2 – 6 years

Matching and sorting activities help children to develop a range of thinking skills and build the foundations for later concepts. Use a pegboard and pegs for this activity. Let the child take a card from the pack, then peg the right colour as well as the number of pegs on the board, according to the card drawn.

One main use of a pegboard is to improve fine motor skills for toddlers, this task does not come so easy. To grasp the peg and successfully place it in a small hole is a big accomplishment for most toddlers. Adding the Uno cards to this activity allows them to practice some maths while having fun.

This can also be done with older children 6 – 10 years, using 2 separate cards to add, subtract, divide or multiply. They will then use to pegboard to peg the correct answer. (Alternative boards or coloured items can also be used for this activity)

Find It: For Children, 2- 10 years old

The player will draw a card from the pack. Once turned around you need to run as fast as you can, finding items with the same colour as on the card, as well as however many items as the number shown on the card.

This game allows creative and fast thinking. Remember where they have seen objects in the house or class that would match their given colour. Thinking out of the box and planning to successfully complete their task. This activity will build stamina and aids muscle development. For younger players, it allows excitement as well as a feeling of achievement when they come back with what was asked for. When little ones play, always make a fuss and congratulate them.

Maths Challenge: For Children Ages 6 – 10

Mathematics challenges teach number confidence, improves memory and quick-thinking skills. Kids will find enjoyment through a game instead of having to use a worksheet to finish their activity. Giving them the opportunity to change their perception of learning about numbers in a positive way. Playing with numbers will provide the child with a practical and tactile experience.

What you need to do is first use some string to create a “washing line”. Get some washing pegs and draw or paint your own maths cards like these.

Draw cards from 2 different decks. Hang your first card then an ‘add, divide, multiply or subtract symbol and then your second card. Then allow the kids to work out the answer.

Build a Body: For Children Ages 4-8 years

You will need a line made with string and washing pegs. Use your Uno cards to build the body. This activity will work on their fine motor skills as the cards are slippery and thin. It will be an activity where focus and persistence are needed. Make sure there is the correct cards hung to give the resemblance of a body….the head, arms, tummy and legs.

All children may not have the same abilities to interpret a form when it comes to body awareness. This can result in them having difficulties with personal space. Encouraging body learning helps children develop an appreciation for their bodies. Identifying body parts and being intentional about using them is a cognitive, physical, and language-enriching process.

The activities mentioned in the proposal mainly focus on the development of early learning and Foundation phase children. Allowing play to assist in making learning more fun. Once love for something has been set it is easy to build on those love.

Cheers!!!

Support me if you like reading this blog post by buying me a cup of tea or coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/TheLifesWay Contact at thelifesway@gmail.com to collaborate and promote your services and products. Subscribe to my YOUTUBE Channel for giveaways, product reviews and mystery unboxings. #TheLifesWay #10YearsofTheLifesWay. Namaste!

A Memoir - This Month Last Year - Feb 2021 www.thelifesway.com #TheLifesWay

Hi Friends,

February 2021 I didn't do much of the posts as I started on a new project and was really busy as I was trying to learn the ropes. I was so grateful in 2022 that I was not only doing a lot of prayers but also getting a lot of goodies from various new brands which contacted me on their own. I celebrated my marriage anniversary at the Hard Rock Cafe last year and this year I celebrated alone as my wife went on a trip to India.

1. From the Rat Race to Financial Freedom - 2nd Edition by Manoj Arora #BookReview #FinancialFreedom - https://www.thelifesway.com/2021/02/from-rat-race-to-financial-freedom-2nd.html - The Rate Race to Financial Freedom released their second edition and I re-read the same and followed some of the principles in the book and I intend to read it again. Manoj Sir has also launched another book named FOOPS! also, I am ordering a physical copy to read once I receive it here.

2. Every Day is Pizza Day! #SugarsBakery #Edenvale #Pizza - https://www.thelifesway.com/2021/02/every-day-is-pizza-day-sugarsbakery.html - I was invited to Sugars Bakery to try out some of their products, especially pizza and really loved the bakery. The desserts and loaves of bread are also nice at the bakery. There is also live music on the weekends and ample parking for everyone to enjoy the same. You should definitely try the same.

3. Musical Maestro to Serenade #SouthAfrican Fans This Valentine’s Day @BluBloodSA - https://www.thelifesway.com/2021/02/musical-maestro-to-serenade.html - It was a nice concert during the lockdown last year and I totally loved the amazing performance of Rahat Fateh Ali Khan on Valentine's Day of 2021.

I ordered the expensive Canon printer cartridges (almost the cost of the new printer) for the first time from Takealot.com but the same got over really soon and then the printer again went into hibernation mode. I really felt that it didn't print the mentioned amount of papers in colour and black n white. I felt that one should never buy these cheap printers costing around R1000 but rather go for the ink tank based desk printers for home. They are expensive to buy initially but the cost of operation is really cheap as you can see the ink at all times and it will work for a long long time. 

I watched Drishyam 2 in its original language Malayalam and it was worth watching. I am still waiting for the Hindi sequel to come if it will ever but really enjoyed watching the same. 

Cheers!!!

Support me if you like reading this blog post by buying me a cup of tea or coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/TheLifesWay Contact at thelifesway@gmail.com to collaborate and promote your services and products. Subscribe to my YOUTUBE Channel for giveaways, product reviews and mystery unboxings. #TheLifesWay #10YearsofTheLifesWay. Namaste!

A Gaming Adventure to Celebrate with @SamsungSA Curved Odyssey G9 #GamingMonitor

Hi Friends,

Samsung's Odyssey G9 Gaming Monitor is just like its namesake - A long series of adventures waiting for you to celebrate. Samsung's 49-inch curved monitor is ready to indulge in the best resolution your eyes can possibly see at a 240hz refresh rate and infinity core lights on the back gives stunning RGB effects to make everyone watching you jealous to the core.

Samsung Curved Gaming Monitor is an experience that you want to have in your life but it does come at a cost that is suited for you if you put in hard work to earn the same. I have been enjoying the same for some days now and the way it helps me finish tasks is really great as I can open up to 3 different screens at one time on the ultra-wide 49-inch high definition screen. Now I have switched back to my old monitor, my eyes are complaining about all the resolution differences they can find between both the screens. 

It's really is a grand experience which you only like if you have felt it and I felt to my core of having something so unique which gives me an immersive experience to learn, hear, see, watch and be in my focus zone all the time. Let's look at some of the features of this amazing Samsung Gaming Monitor. 

1. 49 inches Curved Screen - The 1000R curve really provides you with an immersive experience and it's just like 2 27inches monitors side by side but without the black bezels and also the curve is now suited to your eyes. The main feature of the gaming monitor is the screen and this is the only feature for which you should go and buy your monitor. The dual QHD display screen has a 240 Hz refresh rate & 1ms super-fast response time with Quantum Dot technology which creates vivid colours and you will definitely enjoy all your content on this one. The HDR 1000 provides the depth required to realize the level of details in every scene of the game. For gamers, high refresh rates and super-fast response time makes a great difference as their reaction can be immediate and fast and they can save themselves from the incoming fire in games like Call of Duty and Fortnite. For car racing games too, it really helps as you can see the sides of the car in its curved screen, what's coming from the front, who is catching up on you and have a real experience of driving the car from the comforts of your home and mind you without any petrol/diesel consumption. NVIDIA G-SYNC and FreeSync Premium Pro support will match every frame from your graphics card which is an amazing feature. The aspect ratio of this ultra-wide panel is 32:9 and it was difficult to watch movies/video content via the VLC player as you could go a certain width and the rest of the screen still is black on both sides but for games it's awesome. This display definitely requires a big table to set up at home. 

2. Infinity Core Lighting - The back panel has amazing colour customizations available for you to match your gaming setup. The light is not that bright if the gaming monitor is facing the wall then it's of no use but if it's matching the door, the people are going to be so so jealous. The first time I saw it at a Samsung experience zone, I fell in love with the oscillating light colours but when I was using it at my home setup, I didn't even see them as the monitor was facing the wall and the light is not so bright to reflect much on the wall or the curtains. 

3. Controls and Customizations - There are so many features that are available to the users from Picture-in-Picture to Eye Saver mode which reduces the blue light. Moreover, you can switch on the various picture modes from dynamic to gaming to movies to natural to theatre as seen in the Samsung TVs and other monitors. The height of the display can be adjusted along with the direction from left to right (swivel -15 to +15 degrees) and up and down (tilt -3 to +13 degrees) as per your seating arrangement. It can be wall-mounted but then will take away your infinity core lighting experience. The version I received has 1 HDMI port v2.0, 2 display ports v1.4, 1 USB hub, 2 USB ports v3.0. There is a button at the bottom which is a joystick type to switch the monitor On/Off and other settings. It took me some time to get used to it but really intuitive. The monitor is white in colour and all controls and cables can be hidden using a plastic detachable panel on the back as well as on the stand. The rest of the monitor is black in colour and is made up of nice glossy plastic which really gives premium look and feels. The package comes with a power cable and an HDMI cable long enough to make full use of the display even in a standing position. This is a heavy monitor and weighs around 17 kilograms so needs a little bit of care to move around. The box is also huge so as to take on the curve and could only fit on the back seat of my Honda Civic door to door. 

Overall this is something so valuable so unique that I am still missing the monitor and my eyes are struggling and longing for the Samsung Odyssey G9 Gaming monitor. The overall quality of the product is awesome just like any other Samsung product. If I have the money earned in 2022 via all my social media posts to reach the price of this product, I will definitely put my money to buy this thing rather than any camera or gimbal or laptop etc. That's how much I feel to have this extravaganza for my eyes after spending around R34000, you can have it too in your life from Samsung online store in South Africa. 

Here is my unboxing and assembling the Samsung Odyssey G9 Curved Gaming Monitor which I really enjoyed over the review time I had with him. 

Cheers!!!

Support me if you like reading this blog post by buying me a cup of tea or coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/TheLifesWay Contact at thelifesway@gmail.com to collaborate and promote your services and products. Subscribe to my YOUTUBE Channel for giveaways, product reviews and mystery unboxings. #TheLifesWay #9YearsofTheLifesWay. Namaste!

New Year Resolutions - Week 8 Achievements & Failures #TheLifesWay

Hi Friends,

Week 8 which is almost the end of the second month of 2022, I am still struggling with the reminiscence of the quiz competition with various ifs and buts as to I could have done this that etc are coming to my mind. I need to stop thinking about it now. I have now been involved in creating a lot of Youtube videos which you can watch on my channel - The Life's Way. People have been going gaga over the palindrome 22-02-2022 date which also fell on a Tuesday which is kind of a special day for me so I gifted myself something by buying the same. 

Week 8 - 19 Feb 2022 (Sat) to 25 Feb 2022 (Fri)

1. Walking - I started walking again after taking a full rest for 3 days and finally coming back to my 5 kilometres walking evenings on a daily basis. I also had to complete the pending kilometres from the last week's remaining 20 kilometres. I can say that I completed the same and reached around 23 kilometres and more this week. I am still not able to complete the 200000 steps a month on the Samsung Health App using the same on their smartphone. 

2. Daily Prayers - February I could not even complete a full year of Hanuman Chalisa as I was too focused on watching more Youtube videos rather than creating or praying. I think I spend more time-wasting it rather than utilizing the same. I also worked this week to complete the pending Gratitude journals for the last few days. This should not be the case going forward. Every day or at least every other day I should complete the same going forward else I will keep those sheets empty. 

3. Personal Hygiene - Hair cut was something I was missing for many days so finally I sorted that out on 19-Feb and soon I will make a calendar event to remind me every 3-4 weeks to go for a hair cut at my nearest saloon. For shaving my face, I generally use Philips Aquatouch Dry and Wet Shaver (AT610) which I bought many years ago now and it's working great whereas it was not an expensive one and I bought the same for only R300 from Pick n Pay store. I am not sure of the model as I could not read the version on the device due to fading of the print. 

4. Books/Audiobooks - I started the Ikagai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life by Hector Garcia which I wanted to read but rather heard it and finished it this week itself. This one covers a lot of things from meditation to exercise to eating to living joyfully in nature. After this one, I started listening to The Courage to be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga which is really a difficult one as it needs a re-read for sure to understand what the writers are trying to say. But anyway I found some of the learnings from this book, I have already made up my mind about long ago and living them too. 

5. Fountain Pen - I went to the Stationery and Print store in Sandton City and I checked out the Lamy fountain pens I always wanted to buy which is one of the affordable ones for me though they sell Mont Blanc too. As I came out undecided (on 22-02-2022) which colour to buy, I could see Yellow all around me - on the road, pillars, billboards, advertisements so it was clearly a sign that I should buy a Yellow Safari Fountain Pen which I did the very next day and the store manager offered me a discount too. Now I need to go back and buy the expensive ink bottles too. It's a hobby that will make you spend a lot of money. 

6. Launch Event - I was invited to the BCX Digital Innovation Report 2022 launch event and this was my first time ever invited by them. I really loved listening to the CEO and other executive team members from the company and the report is really an eye-opener. I got it and now I will go through it soon enough. I also watched the Blacklight movie at a Premiere at Sterkinekor in Sandton City. I am sure Liam Neeson now should definitely retire if these are the movies he is going to offer still working upon the chase and run kind of cinema. Totally not worth your money, but the popcorn at Sterkinekor is really something to cherish. I also got Samsung Z Fold 3 for review and I have started using the same too. 

7. Salary Week - This was the time of the month which I wait for all month long - the day when the salary gets deposited into my bank account. This time I found it to be subsequently less than the previous month and I still need to find out the reason for the same. It reminded me of earning extra income to support the lifestyle and holidays or an investment portfolio that can run in parallel to you for the family needs. 

8. Thank You - I completed the 100k for the month and then took it further to about 37000 counts till the end of this week. I am able to do the same for the last 2 months consistently despite the loss of counter earlier on. Thanks to everyone for reading my achievements and failures. 

I hope the month of February 2022 has been a good one for you guys wherever you are. Let's try to achieve what we set to in the month of March 2022 and create a parallel source of income to take care of all your wants too. Amen!

Cheers!!!

Support me if you like reading this blog post by buying me a cup of tea or coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/TheLifesWay Contact at thelifesway@gmail.com to collaborate and promote your services and products. Subscribe to my YOUTUBE Channel for giveaways, product reviews and mystery unboxings. #TheLifesWay #10YearsofTheLifesWay. Namaste!